MINNEAPOLIS — In a week that includes both Passover and Easter, those called to serve are also responding to the COVID-19 crisis.
And that includes 700,000 Catholic nuns throughout the world. Only don’t be mistaken: the sisters will always serve, regardless of any divine calendar.
“This way of being is a way of life. And it happens every week of the year, not just in Holy Week,” said Sister Irene O’Neill of Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet and Consociates in St. Paul.
The commitment may be constant, but the current crisis has significantly changed the context. And given that, the sisters have partnered again with a strong and natural ally – the Minnesota-based Alight, formerly the American Refugee Committee.
The Color Movement
The partnership between Catholic sisters and Alight started a few years ago, when both sides saw the potential to extend their global reach. They called it “The Color Movement,” because they believe joy always comes in color.
“There’s 700,000 Catholic sisters worldwide, working in the trenches, not just living near the communities and working with them, but actually sharing their lives with them,” said Alight’s Annie Nolte-Henning, when KARE 11’s Karla Hult profiled the partnership – and its work – at the U.S.-Mexico border last year.
Nolte-Henning leads The Color Movement along with her “partner in peace and mischief,” Sister Irene, who is also the President of Sisters Rising Worldwide.
“We don’t feel like we have to be the boots on the ground. But what we can do is lift up these sisters who are working on both sides of the border, in these border towns, who’ve been here for centuries,” Nolte-Henning said last year, not realizing how critical that connection would be when also facing a pandemic.
The COVID-19 Crisis and Response
As a humanitarian organization with a global presence, Alight’s staff of 2,500 people is trying to deal with COVID-19 as it slowly spreads throughout the world. But to truly reach the world’s most vulnerable populations, Alight knew it needed the nuns’ help.
“We thought, ‘how can we reach other vulnerable communities around the world that might not have the Alight staff on the ground?’ So we immediately turned to our partnership with Sister Irene and the 700,000 nuns with Sisters Rising Worldwide,” Nolte-Henning said.
The nun network is giving Alight the opportunity to work “alongside” the sisters, Nolte-Henning said, by connecting them with medical advisers who can answer any COVID-related questions. Alight is also providing colorful and basic messaging material that the sisters can share with their individual communities. And beyond that public health campaign, Alight is also giving the sisters exactly what they need, depending on the unique circumstances within their own countries.
“So that’s getting them things like food during lockdown or getting them more soap or hand sanitizer and really meeting them where they are,” Nolte-Henning said.
"They're expanding our capability of reaching out and serving millions of people so we couldn’t do this without them," said Sister Irene about the partnership.
Importantly, the outreach is also focused on keeping the sisters themselves safe – a challenge given their desire to always put others first.
“They’re right on the front lines, and they’re thinking about the people that they’re serving first. So it’s a scary time, thinking that we could be losing a lot of these caregivers just like in the health care industry,” said Sister Irene.
Nolte-Henning added: “We’ve realized that sisters are what society needs most right now. So what we’re trying to do is protect the sisters first, so that they can then protect their communities.”
#InOurHands
Meantime, in this day of overwhelming information and need, Alight is also trying to connect people throughout the world through a simple social media campaign.
“So COVID-19 is a global problem that needs global solutions, so this week we have launched a campaign called “#InOurHands” that unites people globally and allows us to join hands in the fight against COVID-19,” Nolte-Henning said, adding that Alight is asking people to write a message of “love or a message of support” on their hand, take a selfie and show their connection to others.
For more information on joining that #inourhands effort – and to learn more about how you can support Alight’s work with the sisters to help the world’s most vulnerable communities during the COVID-19 crisis, just go to: https://wearealight.org/
And for more information about The Color Movement, just go to: https://wearealight.org/introducing-the-color-movement/
